"It looks pretty decent."
Seeing Shin emerge from the changing room in his kendo attire, Yukino Yukinoshita commented approvingly.
Without a mask, Shin's naturally striking looks stood out. Recently, after a few battles, he'd also acquired a sharp and commanding aura.
Even Yukino, who had never been one for romance, found her heart skip a beat when she saw Shin walk out.
He probably received his fair share of love letters at school.
Oblivious to Yukino's thoughts, Shin took a wooden sword from Saeko Busujima.
The wooden sword was light, and Shin felt an urge to try infusing it with "ki."
However, he knew his "ki" would likely break the wooden sword immediately, so he resisted the impulse.
"Well then, junior, try to observe my sword swings and trajectories as closely as possible," Saeko said, standing opposite Shin with a wooden sword in her hand. Since she was instructing a beginner, she didn't plan on going full force.
As Shin held his wooden sword, Saeko stepped forward and thrust toward his shoulder.
The speed wasn't too fast, but it would be hard for an average person to react. Saeko fully expected to land the blow.
However…
Pa.
Shin casually raised his wooden sword, effortlessly blocking her strike and stopping it in its tracks.
"So this is what wielding a sword feels like."
Though it was his first time holding a wooden sword, Shin seemed to grasp something about the experience of weapon combat. Despite his low synchronization rate, his Saiyan combat instincts kicked in, giving him a faint sense of battle rhythm.
"Hm?"
Saeko, surprised that her thrust was blocked so accurately, felt a spark of interest ignite.
She pivoted her sword and aimed a strike at Shin's waist—this time with a bit more speed and force.
But Shin simply twisted his wooden sword and easily deflected her slash again.
Saeko felt the force of her strike reverberate back through her wooden sword, but when she looked at Shin's sword, it was steady, showing no sign of strain. He'd blocked her strike effortlessly.
In Shin's hand, blocking her attack seemed as easy as holding the sword without moving.
"You're strong, junior."
Saeko's eyes sparkled. Though her attack had failed, she felt thrilled.
Realizing Shin's power and speed were exceptional, Saeko stopped holding back and began a relentless series of strikes aimed all over his body.
In no time, her sword almost blurred in the air, causing Yukino to watch nervously from the sidelines.
But what was even more impressive was that, despite the rapid onslaught, Shin blocked every single strike with ease.
Shin had no formal kendo training; he was simply watching Saeko's sword trajectory and placing his own sword in its path.
"This strength and speed…"
Not only Saeko, but even the kendo instructor could see why Shin was able to parry every strike, and his expression showed clear shock.
"Miss Yukinoshita, your boyfriend is…"
"…"
Yukino was equally surprised by Shin's display. She knew Saeko's strength well, yet her attacks seemed like child's play against Shin.
So astonished was she that she forgot to correct the instructor's assumption about Shin's status.
A few minutes later, Saeko finally withdrew her sword.
For a typical person, her strength was already considerable, but her physical limits were still human. After several minutes of intense strikes, she'd reached her maximum effort.
Meanwhile, Shin hadn't broken a sweat; his arm hadn't even trembled. Saeko's strikes, which she delivered with all her strength, hadn't caused his hand to waver even once.
This power—if Shin were to strike with the wooden sword, Saeko doubted she could block it even with a real blade.
The kendo instructor approached and took the wooden sword from Saeko's hand.
"Sorry, I couldn't do any better," she said, breathing heavily, clearly exhausted.
But her eyes shone as she looked at Shin, revealing her keen interest.
"Don't blame yourself; with this strength and speed, it would be pointless even if I took over," the instructor said, shaking his head and turning to Shin.
"Mr. Shin, do you genuinely want to study kendo?"
Given Shin's strength, it seemed he was beyond the usual desire for fitness training.
"In a way, yes. I mainly want to learn techniques related to weapon use," Shin replied honestly.
Fitness training didn't hold much appeal for him anymore; the real world could only offer him in terms of technique. Kendo was just the beginning—he planned to look for martial arts schools to learn hand-to-hand combat as well.
At least until he had a chance to encounter various martial arts in the world of Dragon Ball, this would have to suffice.
"I see; that makes sense…"
The instructor nodded. Shin clearly hadn't learned kendo before; he was only imitating Saeko's grip.
Because of their strength disparity, he could easily block Saeko's strikes with a wooden sword. However, against someone of equal or greater strength, his grip would likely lose him the weapon.
"In that case…"
"Let me teach him, Sensei."
As the instructor was about to continue, Saeko couldn't help but interrupt.
Under normal circumstances, she would never interrupt someone like this, but she couldn't resist now.
Seeing Saeko's eager expression, Shin felt like she was a hungry person who'd just spotted a delicious meal.
"You, Saeko? Well, that's not a problem, but I'll need Shin's agreement," the instructor replied, turning to Shin.
"Mr. Shin, don't be deceived by Saeko's youth—her kendo technique is nearly as advanced as mine. She's more than capable of teaching technique."
"I don't mind," Shin replied, nodding in agreement.
To be continued…
A bloodbath and Blackbird's skills reveal?!
Should we end the Holy Grail War in one night?!??!
Find out in the advance Chapters.
pat reon.com/ReidAstrea
Btw, hand over your Power Stones, Ningen!